BULLRUN 2013: The party train moves along! (Day3)
Day 3 of the rally saw the Bullrunners blinking into the sunlight in the small College town of Staunton, VA. Bullrun has been here before, and let’s just say that we love Staunton, and Staunton loves us! The party at the Clock Tower was off the hook. The Demas girls showed the locals how to party and a good time was had by all. Not all Bullrunners parties hard last night. A few teams were hit up by some mischievous pranks. Team Big Easy Banditz and Team Royale were hit hard last night, and when the guys awoke, they weren’t happy to see their beastly rally machines had been tampered with. With the Wu’s out of the action this year, it’s difficult to point the finger at who has been doing the pranking. But we do know that a few of the teams have been talking about prank wars before the rally was underway.
After the pranked teams cleaned up their rides, the drivers lined up and prepared to leave Staunton. A police escort would take them out of the town and then the Bullrunners were on their own. Team Texas took the lead, much to their surprise. As they stopped off at a Starbucks and saw the pack go past, they quickly learned that they had pole position. Some teams took shelter behind the pack, fearing another police roadblock. We’ve seen a few of these over the past few days – nothing serious, just the police wondering what we’re up to.
The Big Easy Banditz found themselves pulled over on the side of the road, allowing all the Bullrunners to pass them. Just as the guys pondered whether they would even be in contention for this year’s Navigator Award, they made a last-minute decision to break away from the highway and take a country road. This decision turned a possible last-place finish for the day to a third-place arrival at the final checkpoint.
The roadblock in West Virginia yesterday saw the Sheriffs pull out their shotguns on the drivers, thinking they were drug-runners. Are they serious? We’re here to have fun, drive our cars across this great country and party hard at each city we stop in, not conscript to a drug cartel! The drivers headed off to the Amtrak station in Lorton, VA. This checkpoint is a unique one, a true Bullrun first. In order to get to the next checkpoint, teams had to board the auto train, taking them to an unknown destination. Now how’s that for a surprise?
The drivers boarded one of the world’s longest passenger trains, measuring in at a ¾ mile long! Of course, in true Bullrun fashion, the Bullrunners took over the train, dubbing one of the train cars the “party caboose!”
Mike Baumann of Team Wheelz Up challenged Drake Kemper of Team Royale to a race across the train – fron the front all the way to the back. Who ever made it from one end to the other without stopping would win. Both Mike and Drake took the challenge head-on and ran the whole distance, each winning $250 for their victory! Congrats gents!
Team Royale, Phil and Drake, fell victim to the prank wars last night.
So did the Big Easy Banditz, Ricky and Billy!
Drake ‘Thor’ Kemper, decided it would be a good idea to use his superpowers to try to slow down the other teams. Team Wheelz Up, Jeb and Mike, were held up in Staunton last night. Some wondered if they would even make it to the next checkpoint.
The Banditz had a prank of their own! With the absence of defending Bullrun champ, Seth Rose, the Banditz decided to give their former competition a shout out!
The teams lined up on the grid, ready to go. The Demolition Team took pole position, and the drivers were on their way.
The drivers headed on to the Amtrak Auto Train, a true Bullrun first. Their destination remained a mystery.
Team Pearsall took shelter behind Team Mustang Girls ’65 Mustang. Normally the Pearsall Maserati is up, up and away! But today, Dave felt it was a good idea to lay low.
Ricky and Billy have been powering through the rally so far. They might just win the Navigator Award, unless some of the other teams have anything to say about it!
Team Rolling 7, Shaun, Brandon and Cara, showed up to the Amtrak Auto Train checkpoint first, well ahead of the rest of the drivers.
Bullrun boards the party train heading to somewhere in Florida! How many Bullrunners can we fit in a sleeper? Let’s find out!
